July 25, 2024
Christina is 30 years old, and she leads an SAP HCM team at valantic. Early in her career, she gained her first leadership experience and discovered leadership as a career option. Among other things, she has learned not to be discouraged by stereotypes. Her advice to other women in the IT industry: “Keep asking questions. Keep exploring.”
Gladly. My name is Christina, I am 30 years old, and I have been working at valantic for almost two years. I live in beautiful Fürth and lead an SAP HCM team in our corporate customer department.
I completed my business studies in a dual course of study at an electronics company, after which I switched to the mobile phone industry. With the pandemic came the desire for further development and I started a master’s degree in business consulting and digital management. So, I moved increasingly toward IT and finally ended up at valantic in SAP HR Consulting.
My team and I support our customers’ HR projects from start to finish. That means that we start with the first idea, design quotations, plan together, conduct workshops, and implement the project. In the end, we also like to celebrate the conclusion of a project together.
Immediately after completing my bachelor’s degree, I gained my first leadership experience managing a 14-person team, but in a completely different industry. This first leadership role was a lot of fun for me, even though I later gave it up with a job change. At valantic, I was entrusted with project responsibility. The increase in projects meant creating a new structure that would work for both us and our customers. My boss asked me if I was interested in becoming the team lead and I immediately agreed.
The duration of projects varies greatly. A project can last only a few days or span several years. Our longest current project will occupy us until 2027.
I do not have a clear preference. Short projects are important in order to celebrate small successes on a regular basis. Long-term projects, on the other hand, offer the opportunity to work intensively with the same people and to build deeper connections. From a technical point of view, long-term projects are often more challenging. Overall, I appreciate the variety and mix of both.
I like a lot about my work at valantic: The international community, the varied projects, and the work with new cultures and languages is incredibly exciting for me. It motivates me to see the success of my projects and to watch how my team grows and develops. I am particularly pleased to mentor young people as they start their careers and see how they learn new topics and make technical progress, even if they had little experience with SAP in the beginning, for example.
I set clear boundaries between the different areas of my life. For me, the end of the day is the end of the day, the weekend is the weekend, and vacation is vacation. Although I have my mobile phone with me on vacation, it stays off to avoid the temptation to look at it. This is very important to me, and also to my team. It is essential to have time to rest and to take breaks, as our job can be mentally challenging. In my free time, I make sure I’m never bored; I spend a lot of time with friends and family and go to concerts.
I recommend that everyone on my team have two mobile phones – one for work and one for private use. So, you can also switch off and you are not available around the clock. That’s important in order to stay healthy and productive in the long term.
In my business unit, which is led by a woman, our team consists of four team leaders, three of whom are female, which corresponds to a rate of 75%. I find it particularly remarkable that of these three women, two are mothers, one of them even a young mother in a part-time management position. This shows me that career and motherhood are compatible with one another. Most members of my team are women. Our male colleagues are in the minority; this wasn’t planned, it just happened. I’m very proud of it, as this is still a rarity in the IT industry, but I hope that will change.
No, I was not aware that I was entering a male-dominated field. The reality only became clear to me during my studies and in my professional life, when I was confronted with prejudices. At the age of 18, such an experience was a shock; today I would react confidently to it. The mobile phone industry is also male dominated, but I was lucky enough to have a female executive. Talking to other women around me is valuable and empowering. At valantic, I feel the gender distribution is more balanced.
My advice is just to try it. It’s always possible to change your mind later on, regardless of your age. IT is often misperceived; it does not necessarily mean studying computer science or programming code. So, dare, ask many questions, and don’t be discouraged. Just try it.
“Keep asking questions. Keep exploring.”
Thank you for your time and the exciting insights into your career, Christina.
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